- Hey Lizzy guess what have I found! - Felix stormed into the room with a huge smile on his face.
- Hey. Based on your face something hilarious, and based on the book you tried to hide behind your back I have no idea. - the brunette looked at him with real confusion.
- First, I had no idea you have Andersen in your library, second that he's this funny! It's like a complete parody! I love it!
- And third, I have still no idea what are you talking about exactly. Sooo, would you pretty please tell me? - she smiled and giggled. Her friend was too cheerful to be serious right next to him. And she loved him that way.
Outside the factory heap of rags in bundles towered. The rags were from all over the world: every piece had its own story, and spoke its own language, but of course no one could hear all of them in the same time. There were homemade rags and foreigns too. There laid a Danish rag right next to a Norwegian: this Danish in every inch, that Norwegian from the roots of its heart, and this was the amusing in both; that's how every Danish and Norwegian would think.
They recognized the other's language, however according to the Norwegian the two language is so far from each other as the French and the Hebrew.
- For us, the habitant of the grim peaks, the language is manly as well, robustious , and the Danish is no different than sweet child's babble.
That's how the rag's conversed, even though rags are rags in every country, they worth only something in a ragbag.
- I'm a Norwegian! - exclaimed proudly the Norwegian rag. - And with this, I think, I've said enough. My muscles are tough like the cliff-threads in the Ancient- Norway, in that country which has constitution, just like the independent America! My every muscle stretch if I remember I'm a Norwegian, and I can shout out my thoughts to the world in sonorous granit-words!
- And we have literature! - the Danish rag didn't let itself either. - Do you even know what tree it is growing on?
- Do I know it? - spatted the Norwegian resentfully - My honorable friend from the lowland, I would love to take you up the cliff peaks, where the northern lines are the light. When the Norwegian sun melts the ice, Danish merchants are sailing up to us: they sell useful products, cheese and butter, and as a bonus they offer the Danish literature! Only we don't need it. It"s easy to give up on the poor beer there, where the icy water gurgles in the headspring, and we have such wells which weren't drilled men-made, whose fame the papers didn't brought to the world, the talking of the friends and writers journeys to abroad! I'm talking freely, as my heart wants to speak: it's better if the Danish gets used to the straight speech, they can even learn it from me, from the proud, rocky homeland which is the cradle of harvest!
- A good for something Danish rag wouldn't speak like this! - said scornfully the Danish. - We're different. I'm very much aware of myself, and I know it as well, every Danish rags resembles me: we are kindhearted, and modest, because we don't really trust ourselves. With this of course we cannot really achieve anything, but I like this attribute, it's so appealing! Apart this I assure you, I'm aware of my virtues, but I don't talk about them, no one can scold me that I'm bragging. I'm soft, and flexible, I take everything on my stride, I'm not envious of anyone, I speak only the good sides of my friends, even if there's more bad one could tell about them as good, but no more! I'm taking the things from their serene side, because I want to.
- Don't talk to me anymore on that milky, squeamish, low-landed tongue because I'm sick of it! - cracked the Norwegian rag, and with the help of the wind released from its bundle and flied to another.
Odd-come-shortly both were turned into paper. By mere accident, to the paper made from the Norwegian rag a Norwegian young man wrote a love letter in which he vowed loyalty to a Danish girl, and the Danish rag became the manuscript paper of a Danish poet: he wrote an ode on it, which glorified the Norwegians' strength and greatness.
Even rags can make it if they get out from the cloth bag: they can turn into truth and beauty and with good agreement they can be helpful for humanity.
Up to this point the story is quite facetious, right? And the main point is no one was offended, at most the rags.
Elisabeth wiped her eyes from laughter as Felix closed the book, looking at his friend grinning.
- Oh my… I completely forgot this story! But it was quite a long time when I opened old Andersen as well... This is amazing! How could I forget? We should read it on a World Meeting, it would be hilarious! Just imagine how would Lukas and Bertram take it? - she was still giggling, imagining the two nordic male staring at each other in disbelief and annoyment. - It would be priceless!
- Yeah, totally! I never thought dear old Andersen was this humorous! Plus, the two guy we know are like completely switched places! Bertram is not that melancholic, and can you imagine Lukas as he speaks about how manly he is? Like breaking a table to prove himself? - Felix rolled as he laughed next to the Hungarian woman. - Buuuut, you still haven't find me a cheerful story from that guy we read for the half day. Sooo?
- Okay, okay, I almost found the perfect one for you, but this joke was too good to let it die this soon, so why don't we call and tell them? - she grinned from ear to ear.
- Bring the phone, babe, we have a story to tell!
A. N.: Thank you for reading it, the little story is from the well known H.C. Andersen himself, but I couldn't find the English translation of it so I tried it myself, sorry for any grammatical mistake, I tried my best, and I used a Hungarian book of Andersen so it's probably not the same as the original in Danish. Sorry for that as well.
Hope you liked it, I will search for a normal story from Hungary as well, and if you have any idea whose fairy tales could be mentioned here be my guest and send my your idea :) I just love fairy tales and bedtime stories. And yes, I'm a grown up adult... legally. Thanks for reading again, and have a nice day or night :)